I will be glad to help you out here, ok? There are many, many verses on this most precious subject, as this doctrine tells us about the great, awesome and wonderful love of God for us, demonstrating His tender mercies before all the inhabitants of the univese, fallen and unfallen.
Well, that pastor, to be fair, and not unkind, is incorrect on the first part, but right upon the second. It is not a matter of "possible to read the Bible in a way that supported annihilation", but rather a simple plain reading from Genesis to Revelation will clearly show this. Now, admittedly, there are a handful, a very few, passages of scripture that need to be read carefully and prayerfully, as at the first they seem to go in another direction than the whole. However, when considered meticulously, they are seen to be in perfect agreement with all the texts from the beginning unto the last.
Yes, I agree, we do not want a 'What I think ...', but rather an "It is written ...", and a "Thus saith the LORD ...", for as it is written:
Isaiah 8:20 KJB - To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
We can stick to just the Bible if you want, with as minimal an explanation as possible, where needed. Though, I must warn, my own definition of "minimal" can be quite expansive, compared to others definition of said word.
, however, it generally means the "pit", "grave", "lower parts of the earth", and linked with words like "darkness", "corruption", "death", "worms", "dust", "burnt", "fire", "torment", etc.
It is not so much that "hell", or ever "hellfire", or even the "lake of fire", will not be a place of 'conscious torment', because it will be, but that it is not an eternal and endlessly suffering in conscious torment, but rather a punishment upon wickedness and sin, that brings the execution of the penalty, or the wages for sin, eternal death, called the "second death", "twice dead", etc, where those who perish in said fires, will come to a point of ceasing to exist, without any further opportunities at life, or resurrection. They will be gone forever, including satan and all his angels with him.
I will demonstrate some of these, from the scripture [KJB], things in a moment.
There are a few, as stated, passages that seem to teach an eternal, endless conscious torment, but when read prayerfully and slowly, and carefully, considering each word in its proper place, in comparison with the context of the whole, they will be seen to not teach such a doctrine, but rather the opposite. I am not asking anyone to take my word, but to take the "word" of God. Allow me to help you on this.
You are right, God will always do the right thing, that's because He is love [1 John 4:8,16 KJB], and He always knows what is best, even for those who never accepted His offer in Christ Jesus.
God is the judge of the heart of all persons, and He knows the light that all person have had in regards His offer in Christ Jesus.
John 3:19 KJB - And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
There will be those in Heaven who never knew the name of Jesus, because they had no opportunity in life to know:
Zechariah 13:6 KJB - And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
I am not looking to give any false hopes, but simply stating what scripture [KJB] says.
According to scripture [KJB], no matter whether your father ultimately believed or did not ultimately believe, is dead, buried [assumably, if not cremated, buried at sea, etc] and in the grave, and is asleep in death, knowing nothing, feeling nothing, doing nothing, unconscious of any passage of time, until such time as his call by God to the resurrection
, either to the first great, being the resurrection of life [at the beginning of the 1,000 years] or to the second great, the resurrection of condemnation [at the end of the 1,000 years, Revelation 20; Isaiah 24 KJB, etc].
Other passages can also be looked at individually, and such terms like "unquenchable", "eternal", "for ever and ever", "everlasting", etc and their Biblical use in terms of the righteous and the wicked in context.
Begin to ask, where are the all of the wicked [including Satan and his angels] standing in
? Do they [the wicked] live there eternally or are they rather not completely destroyed so that the New Heaven and the New Earth may be created there, wherein dwelleth righteousness, peace, no more tears, pain or sorrow or sin or satan?
The text [Matthew 10:28] is saying, simply [a more thorough answer may come if needed/requested], that mankind cannot so kill/destroy the person to where they cannot be resurrected by God and so live again [therefore do not fear that temporary death], but says the text and Christ Jesus Himself, that God can so kill/destroy the person that they cannot be so resurrected ever again [a permanent death, and to fear/reverence Him, ie obey God rather than men].
There is a clear and distinct difference in scripture given, between the 1st death ['sleep', 'no knowledge'] and 2nd death [annihilation, 'no more'].
This text [Matthew 10:28] absolutely shows that the pagan and platonic philosophy of immortal tormenting sufferors [in any manner] is incorrect. God does not prolong the suffering of the wicked in their sin, hatred and misery, He justly, mercifully and even lovingly ends it forever.
Matthew 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28 και μη φοβηθητε απο των αποκτεινοντων το σωμα την δε ψυχην μη δυναμενων αποκτειναι φοβηθητε δε μαλλον τον δυναμενον και ψυχην και σωμα απολεσαι εν γεεννη
Matthew 10:28 καὶ μὴ φοβηθῆτε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποκτενόντων τὸ σῶμα, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν μὴ δυναμένων ἀποκτεῖναι· φοβήθητε δὲ μᾶλλον τὸν δυνάμενον καὶ ψυχὴν καὶ σῶμα ἀπολέσαι ἐν γεέννῃ.
Matthew 10:28 AndG2532 fearG5399 notG3361 (G575) them which killG615 theG3588 body,G4983 butG1161 are notG3361 ableG1410 to killG615 theG3588 soul:G5590 butG1161 ratherG3123 fearG5399 him which is ableG1410 to destroyG622 bothG2532 soulG5590 andG2532 bodyG4983 inG1722 hell.G1067
Matthew 10:28 καιG2532 CONJ μηG3361 PRT-N φοβηθητεG5399 V-AOM-2P αποG575 PREP τωνG3588 T-GPM αποκτεινοντωνG615 V-PAP-GPM τοG3588 T-ASN σωμαG4983 N-ASN τηνG3588 T-ASF δεG1161 CONJ ψυχηνG5590 N-ASF μηG3361 PRT-N δυναμενωνG1410 V-PNP-GPM αποκτειναιG615 V-AAN φοβηθητεG5399 V-AOM-2P δεG1161 CONJ μαλλονG3123 ADV τονG3588 T-ASM δυναμενονG1410 V-PNP-ASM καιG2532 CONJ ψυχηνG5590 N-ASF καιG2532 CONJ σωμαG4983 N-ASN απολεσαιG622 V-AAN ενG1722 PREP γεεννηG1067 N-DSF
This very verse not only vindicates God in His infinite love, but also His word, His doctrine, that in the first death, all
, when Christ Jesus finally descend upon the mount of olives in the 3rd Advent with all of the saved and glorified saints and New Jerusalem
, wherein satan, his devils and all of the wicked who have ever lived will face the executive judgment of the 2nd death
, from which there is no returning, it is a total annihilation and removal of sin forever
, but it also completely, absolutely, and most thankfully, eliminates any possibility of the satan [thus pagan] originated
doctrine of 'eternal tormented sufferers', 'immortal soul/spirit' theology and and a vindictive, sadistic, cruel and malevolent Jesus from being true.
Why does it eliminate such possibility of 'eternal tormented sufferers' and erroneously dangerous 'immortal soul/spirit' theology? For the text in the latter half is most strikingly clear and decisive:
, which mankind is unable to do. The doctrine of devils
that the wicked suffer eternally is now itself - destroyed, itself subject to the 2nd death. Jesus, Himself,
, says that we as His followers ought not to fear, or be afraid of, those people which are able to kill/destroy this current existence of ours, this mortal body/flesh
, for these people can only kill/destroy in the manner which God has allowed which is the first death, and so those which are so killed/destroyed or die in such manner are, as Christ Jesus Himself, says, they which
who is not only able, but will so destroy all sin and sinners in the 2nd Death, which is to come, and from which there is no return, nor resurrection, nor life in any fashion.
A: [sleep, asleep, sleepeth] Deuteronomy 31:16; 2 Samuel 7:12; Job 3:13, 7:21, 14:12; 1 Kings 1:21, 2:10, 11:21,43, 14:20,31, 15:8,24, 16:6,28, 22:40,50; 2 Kings 8:24, 10:35, 13:9,13, 14:16,22,29, 15:7,22,38, 16:20, 20:21, 21:18, 24:6; 2 Chronicles 9:31, 12:16, 14:1, 16:13, 21:1, 26:2,23, 27:9, 28:27, 32:33, 33:20; Job 14:12; Psalms 13:3; Matthew 27:52; John 11:11-13; Acts 7:60, 13:36; 1 Corinthians 15:6,18,20,51; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-15; 2 Peter 3:4;
[awake] Job 14:12; Psalms 17:15; Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2; John 11:11-13;
[grave/bed] Job 17:13; Psalms 139:8; Luke 17:34;
[fathers and prophets are dead] John 6:49,58, 8:52,53; Acts 2:29,34, 13:36; Hebrews 11:4,13,16,40
B: [knowing nothing] Genesis 27:4, 45:28; Ruth 1:17; Job 3:17-19, 7:8-10, 14:21, 21:32; 2 Kings 22:20; 2 Chronicles 34:28; Psalms 6:5, 28:1, 31:17, 88:4,10,11, 115:17, 143:7, 146:4; Ecclesiastes 9:4,5,6,10; Isaiah 14:11, 38:18;
[reserved] 2 Peter 2:9;
[He goes to prepare a place, so that when He comes again, 2nd Advent, He will raise us and receive us] John 14:2-3
C: [grave/s, sepulchre/s, tomb/s, pit/s, hell [ie Hb: sheol; Gr: hades; grave]] Genesis 23:6, 35:20, 37:35, 44:29,31, 50:5; Exodus 14:11; Numbers 16:30, 19:16,18; Deuteronomy 34:6; Judges 8:32, 1 Samuel 2:6, 10:2; 2 Samuel 3:32, 4:10, 17:23, 19:37, 21:14, 22:6; 1 Kings 2:6,9, 13:22,30,31, 14:13; 2 Kings 9:28, 13:21, 21:26, 22:20, 23:6,16,17,30; 2 Chronicles 16:14, 21:20, 24:25, 28:27, 32:33, 34:4,28, 35:24; Nehemiah 2:3,5, 3:16; Job 3:17-19,22, 5:26, 7:8-10, 10:19, 11:8, 14:12-14,21, 17:1,13,16, 21:13,23-32, 24:19, 26:6, 30:24, 33:22; Psalms 5:9, 6:5, 18:5, 28:1, 30:3, 31:17, 35:7, 49:14,15, 55:15, 86:13, 88:3,4,5-12, 89:48, 94:13, 115:17, 116:3, 139:8, 141:7, 143:7; Proverbs 1:12, 5:5, 7:27, 9:18, 15:11,24, 23:14, 27:20, 30:16; Ecclesiastes 6:6, 9:10; Song of Songs
[Solomon] 8:6; Isaiah 5:14, 14:9,11,15,19, 22:16, 28:15,18, 38:10,18, 53:9, 57:9, 65:4; Jeremiah 5:16, 8:1, 26:23, 20:17; Ezekiel 26:20, 31:15-17, 32:18,21-27, 37:12,13, 39:11; Hosea 13:14; Amos 9:2; Jonah 2:2
[<- figurative, typological]; Nahum 1:14; Habakkuk 2:5; Matthew 8:8, 11:23, 23:27,29, 27:52,53,60,61,64,66, 28:8; Mark 5:2,3,5, 6:29, 15:46, 16:2,3,5,8; Luke 8:27, 10:15, 11:47,48, 23:53,55, 24:1,2,9,12,22,24; John 5:28, 11:31,38, 12:17, 19:41,42, 20:1-4,6,8,11; Acts 2:29,34, 7:16, 13:29,36; Romans 3:13; 1 Corinthians 15:55; Revelation 1:18, 11:9, 20:13,14
D: [resurrection/s] 1 Samuel 2:6; Job 14:12-14, 19:26; Psalms 16:10; Hosea 13:14; Matthew 22:23,28,30,31, 27:52,53
[special firstfruits resurrection; see also Isaiah 26:19; Ephesians 4:8]; Mark 12:18,23,25; Luke 14:14, 20:27,33,35,36; John 5:29, 6:25,28,29,39,40,44,54, 11:24,25; Acts 2:27,31, 4:2,33, 17:31,32, 23:6,8, 24:15,21; Romans 1:4, 6:5,8; 1 Corinthians 15:12,13,16,20,21,23,29,32,35,42,43,52-55; Ephesians 1:20, 4:8
[special firstfruits resurrection; see also Isaiah 26:19; Matthew 27:52,53]; Philippians 3:10,11; Colossians 3:3; 2 Timothy 2:18, 4:1; Hebrews 6:2, 11:35; 1 Peter 1:3, 3:21; Jude 1:9
[Moses resurrection; combine with Matthew 17; Mark 9; Luke 9; 2 Peter 1:16; Romans 5:14]; Revelation 1:5,18, 20:5,6,13;
[translations] - Enoch [Genesis 5:24; Hebrews 11:5];
Elijah [2 Kings 2:1,11; Matthew 17:3; Mark 9:4; Luke 9:30,31]
and some at Jesus's 2nd Advent/Coming [1 Thessalonians 4:13-17];
other special resurrections that took place -
Elijah raises the Widow of Zarephath's [1 Kings 17:17-24];
Elijah raises the son of the Shunamite Woman [2 Kings 4:18-37];
A man and Elisha's Bones [2 Kings 13:20-21];
The Valley of Bones, the Resurrected Army [Ezekiel 37:1-14];
Jesus raises the Widow of Nain's Son [Luke 7:11-17];
Jesus raises Jairus's Daughter [Matthew 9:18,19,23-26; Mark 5:22-24,35-43; Luke 8:41-42,49-56];
Jesus raises Lazarus [John 11:1-47];
Peter raises Tabitha [Dorcas] [Acts 9:36-42];
Paul raises Eutychus [Acts 20:9-12];
Paul himself was not resurrected but was miraculously healed from stoning [Acts 14:19-20];
a special resurrection that will take place before the Great First Resurrection of the Righteous [Daniel 12:2,12; Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62; Revelation 1:7, 14:13];
Jesus' Resurrection [Matthew 28:1-20; Mark 16:1-20; Luke 24:1-53; John 20:1-31]
E: [a special resurrection, some righteous, some wicked - to witness Christ coming in Power in Glory to fulfill His Word] Daniel 12:1-3,12; Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62; Revelation 1:7, 14:13
F: [[first great] resurrection [of the saints, just, life, before/at start of the 1000 years when Christ Jesus returns in Power and Glory], raised] 1 Samuel 2:6; Job 14:12-14, 19:26; Hosea 13:14; Matthew 22:31; Mark 12:18,23,25; Luke 14:14, 20:35,36; John 5:29a, 6:25,28,29,39,40,44,54, 11:24,25; Acts 4:2, 17:31,32, 23:6, 24:15a,21; Romans 6:5,8, 8:11; 1 Corinthians 15:12,13,16,20,21,23,29,32,35,42,43,52-55; Philippians 3:10,11; Colossians 3:3; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; 2 Timothy 2:18, 4:1; Hebrews 6:2, 11:35; Revelation 20:5b,6;
[All the Holy "Clouds" of Angels [the "reapers"] with Him] Psalms 68:17, 104:3; Isaiah 66:15; Matthew 13:39,49, 16:27, 24:30, 25:31,51, 26:64; Mark 8:38, 13:27; Luke 9:26, 21:27; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 3:13, 4:16-17; Hebrews 1:7; Revelation 1:7, 12:7
G: [2nd Advent/Coming in Power and Glory, with all the holy angels, even unto the 3rd] Zechariah 14:1-7
[3rd]; Daniel 2:35,44,45, 7:14,22,27, 8:25, 12:1-3; Matthew 19:28, 24:30, 25:31; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27; 1 Corinthians 15:43; 2 Thessalonians 1:9
H: [[second great] resurrection [of the wicked, unjust, damnation, at the end/close of the 1000 years, when Christ Jesus and all of the Saints [then immortal] descend to Earth in New Jerusalem upon the Mount of Olives, and the Great White Throne Judgment takes place; Zechariah 14; Revelation 20]] John 5:29b; Acts 17:31, 24:15b; Revelation 20:5a
I: [resurrection of unjust/damnation takes place on earth] Revelation 20:5,7-15
J: [1000 years, the day of the Lord, the 7th millennium] Psalms 90:4; Isaiah 24:22; 2 Peter 3:8; Revelation 20:2,3,4,5,6,7;
see also the Biblical pattern,
Just as the week is 6 Days and the 7th of Rest [Genesis 2:2-3; Exodus 16:26, 20:8-11, 23:12, 31:15,17, 34:21, 35:2; Leviticus 23:3; Deuteronomy 5:12-15, Ezekiel 46:1; etc], so too is to be the 1000 years, a Sabbath of Rest in Heaven, for the Gospel has been preached in the world for 6000 years.
Just as the feast of Unleaven Bread would last for 6 days and the 7th a solemn assembly; Deuteronomy 16:8
Just as Joshua surrounded Jericho for 6 days [1 times] and on the 7th Day [7 times]; Joshua 6:3,4, 13-16
Just as the Land itself was to be worked for 6 years and the 7th year it was to be left alone, so too is to be the 1000 years, a Sabbath of Rest in Heavenly Canaan - The Promised Land. [Exodus 23:10-11]
Just as the slaves worked for 6 years, they were to be set free in the 7th year, so too is it to be in the 1000 years, a Sabbath of Rest in Heaven. [Exodus 21:2; Deuteronomy 15:12]
Just as Moses waited at the base of the Mountain 6 days, and on the 7th he was then called up into the Mount, into the clouds, so too shall we be called upwards. [Exodus 24:16; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17]
Just as Joash was hid in the Temple 6 years, while Athaliah [daughter of Jezebel] reigned, and in the 7th year he was crowned King and came out with an army to slay her, so too will CHRIST JESUS come as KING of Kings and LORD of Lords and HE shall reign, and slay the wicked. [2 Kings 1:3; 2 Chronicles 22:12]
Just as JESUS and the three Disciples [Peter, James and John] after 6 days went up the Mountain of Transfiguration, they saw JESUS transfigured before them standing with Moses and Elijah [the Law and the Prophets, the Resurrected Dead and the Translated Living, types of those to be on Earth at the 2nd Advent; Matthew 17, Mark 9; Luke 9; 2 Peter 1:16].
K: [New Jerusalem descends from Heaven with Christ and all Saints, after 1000 years] Zechariah 14:1-5; Revelation 3:12, 20:5-15, 21:2;
L: [2nd death from which there is no life, nor resurrection, nor return - annihilation] Psalms 9:17; Matthew 5:22,29,30, 10:28, 18:9, 23:15,33; Mark 9:43,45,47; Luke 12:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; James 3:6; Revelation 2:11, 20:6,14, 21:8
M: [sin/sinners gone forever, cut off, perished, no more, destroyed, passed away, etc] Job 20:26,29, 31:2-3; Psalms 7:9, 9:17, 11:6, 21:9, 37:10, 37:20, 37:28,38, 68:2, 69:28, 75:8,10, 92:7,9, 104:35, 106:18, 112:10, 145:20; Proverbs 2:22, 10:25,28,30, 12:7, 13:9, 14:11, 24:20; Ezekiel 18:4, 18:20; Isaiah 13:9, 25:8, 66:17,24; Nahum 1:10; Obadiah 1:16; Zephaniah 1:2-3; Malachi 4:1; Matthew 10:28; John 3:16; Romans 6:23; Hebrews 6:8; James 1:15; 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 7:17, 20:9, 21:4
John 3:16 says Perish or Everlasting Life [the wicked receive no such gift as everlasting life [there are no immortalized wicked anywhere and never will be], it is only a gift to the saved/just/righteous].
Additionally, it is the Righteous who will eternally dwell with God, who is
“a Spirit” [John 4:24 KJB], and
“the Holy Spirit” the fullness of
“fire” [Acts 2:3; Revelation 1:4; 4:5 KJB], who
“baptize/s” with
“fire” [Matthew 3:11; Mark 9:49; Luke 3:16 KJB], thus we will dwell with
“everlasting burnings” [Isaiah 33:14 KJB], for God is a
“consuming fire” [to sin and of
“Love”] [Deuteronomy 4:24, 9:3; Hebrews 12:29; 1 John 4:8,16 KJB] and a
“fire goeth before Him” [Psalms 97:3 KJB] which
“shall devour before Him” [Psalms 50:3 KJB] and
“he burned against Jacob like a flaming fire” [Lamentations 2:3 KJB], and for those whom He loves He is a
“wall of fire round about” [Zechariah 2:5 KJB] and His
“ministers a flame of fire” [Psalms 104:4; Hebrews 1:7 KJB] and His
“tongue as a devouring fire” [Isaiah 30:7 KJB] His speech
“fire” [2 Samuel 22:9; Psalms 18:8; Jeremiah 20:9; Acts 2:3; 2 Thessalonians 2:8 KJB], His
“eyes … as a flame of fire” [Revelation 1:14, 2:18, 19:12 KJB], His
“face as the sun” and His
“feet a pillar of fire” [Matthew 17:2; 2 Corinthians 4:6; Revelation 1:15, 2:18, 10:1 KJB], for He is a
“refiners fire” [Malachi 3:2 KJB] having a
“throne of fire” [Psalms 89:36; Daniel 7:9; Ezekiel 1:26-28; Revelation 4:5 KJB], His Ten Commandments a
“Fiery Law” [Deuteronomy 33:2; Ezekiel 28:14,16 KJB] and it is they who have the victory over sin who stand upon the sea of glass
"mingled with fire" [Revelation 15:2 KJB], and will be as the burning bush which was not consumed [Exodus 3:3 KJB], for He is
“Light”, even the Light of all.
However, the lost are never immortal, for they are to be burnt up into smoke and ashes at the meeting out of Judgment, they are perished forever; Job 20:26,29, 31:2-3; Psalms 7:9, 9:17, 11:6, 21:9, 37:10, 37:20, 37:28,38, 68:2, 69:28, 75:8,10, 92:7,9, 104:35, 106:18, 112:10, 145:20; Proverbs 2:22, 10:25,28,30, 12:7, 13:9, 14:11, 24:20; Ezekiel 18:4, 18:20; Isaiah 13:9, 66:17,24; Nahum 1:10; Obadiah 1:16; Zephaniah 1:2-3; Matthew 10:28; John 3:16; Romans 6:23; Hebrews 6:8; James 1:15; 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 20:9, 21:4 KJB.
[Hebrew:
machah מחה; meaning: to wipe out; blot out,
obliterate; exterminated]
[Hebrew:
macah מסה; meaning:
melt away, dissolve, liquefy, consumed]
[Hebrew:
muwg מוג; meaning: to melt,
dissolve, faint, dissipate, flow away]
[Hebrew:
muwth מות; meaning:
dead, death, kill, slain]
[Hebrew:
da`ak דעך; meaning:
extinguished, to go out, put out, dry up, made extinct, quenched]
[Hebrew:
caphah ספה; meaning: to be swept away, destroyed,
consumed]
[Hebrew:
shachath שחת; meaning:
destroyed, corrupted, ruined, decayed]
[Hebrew:
parar פרר; meaning: break apart, frustrate, split,
splinter to pieces, shatter, cracked up]
[Hebrew:
'abad אבד; meaning: perished, vanished, destroyed, die,
exterminated, blot out, put to death]
[Hebrew:
'obed אבד; meaning: destruction,
perish]
[Hebrew:
gava` גוע; meaning: to expire, die, death,
breathe ones last, yield up the last breath]
[Hebrew:
cuwph סוף; meaning: to come to an end, to make an end,
consume utterly, cause to cease, perish]
[Hebrew:
damah דמה; meaning: to cease, cause to cease, cut off, destroy, perish,
to be undone]
[Hebrew:
charam חרם; meaning: to ban,
destroy utterly and completely, exterminated, forfeited, divided, prohibited]
[Hebrew:
kalah כלה; meaning: consumed, determined, ended, finished, completely spent, at an end, perish, terminated,
annihilation, complete destruction]
[Hebrew:
karath כרת; meaning:
cut off, cut asunder, eliminate, kill, cut down]
[Hebrew:
kachad כחד; meaning: hide, conceal, cut down, make desolate, destroy, cut off,
annihilate, efface]
[Hebrew:
bala` בלע; meaning: swallowed up, eaten up,
to be ended]
[Hebrew:
balah בלה; meaning: to wear out, wear away,
use up completely]
[Hebrew:
harac הרס; meaning: to tear down, break down, overthrow,
destroy utterly]
[Hebrew:
show' שוא; meaning: devastated, ruined,
laid to waste]
[Hebrew:
tsamath צמת; meaning: put an end to, cut off, destroy, exterminate,
annihilate]
[Hebrew:
shamad שמד; meaning: destroyed, exterminate,
annihilated, devastated]
[Hebrew:
naphal נפל; meaning: cast down, fail, waste away,
overturn, knock down, fall]
[Hebrew:
'akal אכל; meaning: to eat,
devour, consume, to be wasted, destroyed]
[Hebrew:
chacal חסל; meaning: to consume, eaten up,
bring to an end]
[Hebrew:
tamam תמם; meaning: to be complete, finished,
at an end, consumed, exhausted]
[Hebrew:
'oklah אכלה; meaning: object of devouring,
consuming in judgment]
[Hebrew:
maqaq מקק; meaning: to decay, pine away, rot, fester, corrupt,
dissolve]
[Hebrew:
guwz גוז; meaning: to pass over,
pass away (of life), cut off]
[Hebrew:
yatsath יצת; meaning:
to be burned up, to be made desolate, set on fire]
[Hebrew:
sĕrephah שרפה; meaning: burning, burn,
burnt up throughly]
[Greek:
apollymi ἀπόλλυμι; meaning: to destroy,
put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to ruin, render useless, kill, perish]
[Greek:
lyō λύω; meaning: loosed, undone,
annul, dissolve, do away with, overthrow, break up]
[Greek:
katalyō καταλύω; meaning: dissolved, disunite, overthrow, render vain,
bring to naught]
[Greek:
analiskō ἀναλίσκω; meaning: to expend, consume,
destroy]
[Greek:
phtheirō φθείρω; meaning: to corrupt, to destroy,
to perish, deprave]
[Greek:
diaphtheirō διαφθείρω; meaning: to corrupt, consume, destroy, kill,
eat up, ruin]
[Greek:
aphanizō ἀφανίζω; meaning: to snatch away, take away, to make unseen, to destroy, consume,
to make vanish]
[Greek:
phthora φθορά; meaning: corruption,
destruction, perishing, decay]
[Greek:
kataphtheirō καταφθείρω; meaning: to corrupt, deprave,
to destroy, perish]
[Greek:
ekkoptō ἐκκόπτω; meaning: hewn down,
cut off or out]
[Greek:
apokoptō ἀποκόπτω; meaning:
cut off, amputate]
[Greek:
nekros νεκρός; meaning:
lifeless, dead, deceased, breathed ones last, inanimate, inactive]
[Greek:
nekroō νεκρόω; meaning: dead, put to death,
to deprive of power, destroy the strength]
[Greek:
apothnēskō ἀποθνῄσκω; meaning: to die, perish, dry up,
eternal death]
[Greek:
empi(m)prēmi ἐμπί(μ)πρημι; meaning: burn up,
destroy by fire]
[Greek:
katakaiō κατακαίω; meaning: to burn up,
consume by fire]
Begin to ask, where are the all of the wicked [including Satan and his angels] standing in
Revelation 20:8-9? Do they [the wicked] live there eternally or are they rather not completely destroyed so that the New Heaven and the New Earth may be created there, wherein dwelleth righteousness, peace, no more tears, pain or sorrow or sin or satan?
"...and there was found no place for them." Revelation 20:11;p
N: [the serpent/devil/satan/dragon said, "Ye shall not surely die..."] Genesis 3:4;
and [God said "Ye shall surely die..."] Genesis 2:17, 27:4; Proverbs 19:16; Ezekiel 3:19, 18:4,20, 33:9; James 5:20; Revelation 16:3;
and [God strictly warned and forbade necromancy, attempted communication, prayer to/with the 'dead', for He knew it was false, a deception of Satan to ensnare] Exodus 22:18, Deuteronomy 18:9-12; Isaiah 8:19; Luke 24:5;
[Episode of Saul and the woman of Endor] 1 Samuel 28:7-25, 31:1-12; 2 Samuel 1:1-24; 1 Chronicles 10:1-13
O: [Word definitions, from Strong's, but we can alwys look at how the Bible itself defines this word]:
'Able': "δύναμαι"; "dynamai"; meaning "1) to be able, have power whether by virtue of one's own ability and resources, or of a state of mind, or through favourable circumstances, or by permission of law or custom; 2) to be able to do something; 3) to be capable, strong and powerful"
'Kill': [also 'Destroy']: "ἀποκτείνω"; "apokteinō"; meaning: "1) to kill in any way whatever; a) to destroy, to allow to perish; 2) metaph. to extinguish, abolish"
'Body': "σῶμα"; "sōma"; meaning "1) the body both of men or animals; a) a dead body or corpse; b) the living body; 1) of animals; 2) the bodies of planets and of stars (heavenly bodies); 3) is used of a (large or small) number of men closely united into one society, or family as it were; a social, ethical, mystical body; a) so in the NT of the church; 4) that which casts a shadow as distinguished from the shadow itself"
'Soul': "ψυχή"; "psychē"; meaning "1) breath; a) the breath of life; 1) the vital force which animates the body and shows itself in breathing; a) of animals; b) of men; b) life; c) that in which there is life; 1) a living being, a living soul; 2) the soul; a) the seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions (our heart, soul etc.)"
'Hell': "γέεννα"; "geenna"; meaning "1) Hell is the place of the future punishment call "Gehenna" or "Gehenna of fire". This was originally the valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem, where the filth and dead animals of the city were cast out and burned; a fit symbol of the wicked and their future destruction."
P: [doctrines of devils] 1 Timothy 4:1
Q: [Jesus is the resurrection and the life] John 11:25
R: [man is mortal, mortality] Genesis 2:17; Job 4:17; Romans 6:12, 8:11; 1 Corinthians 15:53,54; 2 Corinthians 4:11, 5:4
S: [dust, clay, earthen] Genesis 1:24,25, 2:7,19, 3:14,19, 18:27; Job 4:19, 7:21, 10:9, 13:12, 17:16, 20:11, 21:26, 30:19, 33:6, 34:15, 40:13; Psalms 22:15,29, 30:9, 103:14, 104:29; Ecclesiastes 3:20, 12:7; Isaiah 26:19, 29:16, 41:25, 45:9, 64:8; Jeremiah 18:4,6; Lamentations 4:2; Daniel 12:2; Malachi 4:3; John 9:6,11,14,15; Romans 9:21; 2 Corinthians 4:7; 2 Peter 2:6
T: [God alone is inherently immortal] 1 Timothy 1:17, 6:14-16
U: [God alone has inherent unborrowed life, original, eternal] John 1:4
V: [nephesh / psychē] "The traditional Christian concept of an immaterial and immortal soul separate from the body is not found in pre-exilic Judaism, but evolved as a result of interaction with Persian and Hellenistic philosophy.[1] Accordingly, the Old Testament Hebrew word nephesh, although translated as "soul" in some older Bibles, actually has a meaning closer to "living being". Nephesh was rendered in the Greek Septuagint (a translation of the Old Testament dating from the centuries immediately prior to the modern era) as psyche (ψυχή), the Greek word for soul. The New Testament also uses the word psyche, but with the Hebrew meaning and not the Greek.[2]
Genesis 2:7 gives the formula for creating a nephesh. According to this verse God did not make a body and put a soul into it like a letter into an envelope of dust; rather he formed man's body from the dust, then, by breathing divine breath into it, he made the body of dust live, i.e. the dust did not embody a soul, but it became a soul—a whole creature.[6] A dead body is not a nephesh. A living, conscious body is a nephesh.
The only Hebrew word traditionally translated "soul" (nephesh) in English language Bibles refers to a living, breathing conscious body, rather than to an immortal soul.[3] John Goldingay writes, "The life of a human being came more directly from God, and it is also evident that when someone dies, the breath (rûaḥ, e.g., Ps 104:29) or the life (nepeš, e.g., Gen 35:18) disappears and returns to the God who is rûaḥ."[4]
In the New Testament, the Greek word traditionally translated "soul" (psyche) has substantially the same meaning as the Hebrew, without reference to an immortal soul.[5]
Man as Nephesh
The LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostrils the breath [neshemah] of life,
and the man became a living being/soul [nephesh]
—Genesis 2:7
Animals as Nephesh
Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. ... And whatever the man called each living creature [nephesh], that was its name. .—Genesis 2:19"
[Wikipedia; "Soul In The Bible"] -
Soul in the Bible - Wikipedia
"...The modern scholarly consensus is that the canonical teaching of the Old Testament made no reference to an "immortal soul" independent of the body.[174][175][176][177] This view is represented consistently in a wide range of scholarly reference works.[178][179][180][181][182][183]
...The mortalist disbelief in the existence of a naturally immortal soul,[1][5] is affirmed as biblical teaching by a range of standard scholarly Jewish and Christian sources. The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Thought (1995), says "There is no concept of an immortal soul in the Old Testament, nor does the New Testament ever call the human soul immortal.",[193] Harper's Bible Dictionary (1st ed. 1985), says that 'For a Hebrew, ‘soul’ indicated the unity of a human person; Hebrews were living bodies, they did not have bodies",[194] the New Bible Dictionary’ (3rd. ed. 1996), says "But to the Bible man is not a soul in a body but a body/soul unity",[195] the Encyclopedia of Judaism’ (2000), says "Scripture does not present even a rudimentarily developed theology of the soul",[196] the New Dictionary of Theology’ (2000), and "The notion of the soul as an independent force that animates human life but that can exist apart from the human body—either prior to conception and birth or subsequent to life and death—is the product only of later Judaism", [191] Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000), says "Far from referring simply to one aspect of a person, “soul” refers to the whole person",[197] the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia says "Possibly Jn. 6:33 also includes an allusion to the general life-giving function. This teaching rules out all ideas of an emanation of the soul.",[198] and "The soul and the body belong together, so that without either the one or the other there is no true man",[199] Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (1987), says "Indeed, the salvation of the “immortal soul” has sometimes been a commonplace in preaching, but it is fundamentally unbiblical.",[200] the Encyclopedia of Christianity (2003), says "The Hebrew Bible does not present the human soul (nepeš) or spirit (rûah) as an immortal substance, and for the most part it envisions the dead as ghosts in Sheol, the dark, sleepy underworld",[201] The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2005), says "there is practically no specific teaching on the subject in the Bible beyond an underlying assumption of some form of afterlife (see immortality)",[202] and the Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible (rev. ed. 2009), says "It is this essential soul-body oneness that provides the uniqueness of the biblical concept of the resurrection of the body as distinguished from the Greek idea of the immortality of the soul".[203][204]
The mortalist disbelief in the existence of a naturally immortal soul,[1][5] is also affirmed as biblical teaching by various modern theologians,[205][206][207][208][209][210][211][212][213] and Hebblethwaite observes the doctrine is "not popular amongst Christian theologians or among Christian philosophers today".[214]"
[Wikipedia; Immortality of the Soul; Modern Scholarship] -
Christian mortalism - Wikipedia
One might also consider [an additional reference]:
What Happens When You Die? | Truth About Death
Is Hell Real? | Hell Truth
Ghosts: Who Are They? | Ghost Truth
http://virginmarybook.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Mary-English.pdf
http://www.pickle-publishing.com/papers/immortality.htm
http://www.pickle-publishing.com/papers/soul-and-spirit.htm
http://biblelight.net/luther-tyndale.htm
Heresy
The Truth About Death
The Truth About Hell & Hellfire
http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Books/CFOOF1966-V01.pdf
http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Books/CFOOF1965-V02.pdf
[Wikipedia; "Annihilationism"] -
Annihilationism - Wikipedia
[Wikipedia; "Conditional Immortality"] -
Christian conditionalism - Wikipedia
[Wikipedia; "Soul Death"] -
Christian mortalism - Wikipedia
[Wikipedia; "Christian Mortalism"] -
Christian mortalism - Wikipedia
Truth About Hell/Hellfire Mini -
Truth About Death Mini-
Testimony of an ex-Satanist, Roger Morneau:
Testimonies of Godly men:
“William Tyndale (1484-1536), English Bible translator and Martyr
In 1530 responding to Sir Thomas More's objection to his belief that "all souls lie and sleep till doomsday" he vigorously replyed.
"And ye, in putting them [the departed souls] in heaven, hell and purgatory, destroy the arguments wherewith Christ and Paul prove the resurection...And again, if the souls be in heaven, tell me why they be not in as good a case as the angels be ? And then what cause is there of the resurrection ?" - William Tyndale, An Answer to Sir Thomas More's Dialogue (Parker's 1850 reprint), bk.4, ch.4, pp.180,181 -
An Answer to Sir Thomas More's Dialogue
Tyndale went to the heart of the issue in pointing out the papacy's draft upon the teachings of "heathen philosophers" in seeking to establish its contention of innante immortality. Thus
"The true faith puteth forth the resurrection, which we be warned to look for every hour. The heathen philosophers, denying that, did put that the souls did ever live. And the pope joineth the spiritual doctrine of Christ and the fleshy doctrine of philosophers together; things so contrary that they cannot agree, no more than the Spirit and the flesh do in a Christian man. And becuase the fleshy-minded pope consenteth unto heathen doctrine, therefore he corrupteth the Scripture to stablish it. If the soul be in heaven, tell me what cause is there for the resurrection?" - ibid., p.180
In yet another section of the same treatise, dealing with the "invocation of saints," Tyndale uses the same reasoning, pointing out that the doctrine of departed saints being in heaven had not yet been introduced in Christ's day:
"And when he [More] proveth that the saints be in heaven in glory with Christ already, saying, 'If God be their God, they be in heaven, for he is not the God of the dead;' there he stealeth away Christ's argument wherewith he proveth the resurrection: that Abraham and all saints would rise again, and not that their souls were in heaven; which doctrine was not yet in the world. And with that doctrine he taketh away the resurrection quite, and maketh Christ's argument of none effect." - ibid., p.118
Tyndale presses his contention still further by showing the conflict of papal teaching with St. Paul, as he says is slightly sarcastic vein :
" 'Nay Paul, thou art unlearned; go to Master More, and learn a new way. We be not most miserable, though we rise not again; for our souls go to heaven as soon as we be dead, and are there in as great joy as Christ that is risen again.' And I marvel that Paul had not conforted the Thessalonians with that doctrine, if he had wist it, that the souls of their dead had been in joy; as he did with the resurrection, that their dead should rise again. If the souls be in heaven, in as great glory as the angels, after your doctrine, shew me what should be of the resurrection?" - ibid. p.118
John Frith (1503-33), associate of Tyndale and fellow martyr writes
"Notwithstanding, let me grant it him that some are already in hell and some in heaven, which thing he shall never be able to prove by the Scriptures, yea, and which plainly destroy the resurrection, and taketh away the arguments wherewith Christ and Paul do prove that we shall rise;..and as touching this point where they rest, I dare be bold to say that they are in the hand of God." - An Answer to John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester
Martin Luther (1493-1546) German reformer and Bible Translator.
Regarding Luther's position Archdeacon Francis Blackburne of Cleveland; rector of Richmond states in his "Short Historical View of the Controversy Concerning an Intermediate State" of 1765 :
"Luther espoused the doctrine of the sleep of the soul, upon a Scripture foundation, and then made use of it as a confutation of purgatory and saint worship, and continued in that belief to the last moment in his life." page 14.
Martin Luther declared that it was the Pope, not the bible, who taught that "the soul is immortal" Martin Luther, Defence, proposition 27
"Luther held that the soul died with the body, and that God would hereafter raise both the one and the other." Catholic Cardinal Du Perron, Historical View, p344
Here are some sample Luther citations. The first one is from a 1573 translation.
"Salomon judgeth that the dead are a sleepe, and feele nothing at all. For the dead lye there accompting neyther dayes nor yeares, but when they are awaked, they shall seeme to haue slept scarce one minute." - An Exposition of Salomon's Booke, called Ecclesiastes or the Preacher, 1573, folio 151v.
"But we Christians, who have been redeemed from all this through the precious blood of God's Son, should train and accustom ourselves in faith to despise death and regard it as a deep, strong sweet sleep; to consider the coffin as nothing other than our Lord Jesus' bosom or Paradise, the grave as nothing other than a soft couch of ease or rest. As verily, before God, it truely is just this; for he testifies, John 11:11: Lazarus, our friend sleeps; Matthew 9:24: The maiden is not dead, she sleeps. Thus too, St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, removes from sight all hateful aspects of death as related to our mortal body and brings forward nothing but charming and joyful aspects of the promised life. He says there [vv.42ff]: It is sown in corruption and will rise in incorruption; it is sown in dishonour (that is, a hateful, shameful form) and will rise in glory; it is sown in weakness and will rise in strength; it is sown in natural body and will rise a spiritual body."- Christian Song Latin and German, for Use at Funerals," 1542, Works of Luther (1932), vol. 6, pp.287,288
"Thus after death the soul goes to its bedchamber and to its peace, and while it is sleeping it does not realise its sleep, and God preserves indeed the awakening soul. God is able to awake Elijah, Moses, and others, and so control them, so that they will live. But how can that be ? That we do not know; we satisfy ourselves with the example of bodily sleep, and with what God says: it is a sleep, as rest, and a peace. He who sleeps naturally knows nothing of that which happens in his neighbor's house; and nevertheless he still is living, even though, contrary to the nature of life, he is unconscious in his sleep. Exactly the same will happen also in that life, but in another and a better way." -"Auslegung des ersten Buches Mose," in Schriften, vol.1, cols. 1759, 1760
"...Protestants denied the Catholic purgatory.
Luther taught mortality of the soul, comparing the sleep of a tired man after a day's work whose soul "sleeps not but is awake" ("
non sic dormit, sed vigilat") and can "experience visions and the discourses of the angels and of God", with
the sleep of the dead which experience nothing but still "live to God" ("
coram Deo vivit").
[4][5][6][7] ..."
"..."so the soul after death enters its chamber and peace, and sleeping does not feel its sleep" (Commentary on Genesis – Enarrationes in Genesin, 1535–1545).
[36]
... However, the
best known advocate of soul sleep was
Martin Luther (1483–1546).
[95] In writing on Ecclesiastes, Luther says, “Salomon judgeth that the dead are a sleepe, and
feele nothing at all. For
the dead lye there accompting neyther dayes nor yeares, but when they are awoken, they shall seeme to have slept scarce one minute.
[96]” -
Intermediate state - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
“As soon as thy eyes have closed shalt thou be woken, a thousand years shall be as if thou hadst slept but a little half hour. Just as at night we hear the clock strike and know not how long we have slept, so too, and how much more, are in death a thousand years soon past. Before a man should turn round, he is already a fair angel.
[97]" -
Christian mortalism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Wishart (1500-1546), Greek scholar, friend of Latimer, tutor of John Knox, and martyr.
Wishart was charged with attacking auricular confession, transubstatiation, extreme unction, holy water, invocation of saints and purgatory. Charge "XVI" was for promulgating the doctrine of the sleep of the soul.
Charge "XVI": Thou false heretic has preached openly saying, that the soul of man shall sleep to the latter day of judgment and shall not obtain life immortal until that day." Blackburne, "Historical View", p.21.
General Baptists In his "Institutes of Ecclesiastical History" chancellor of the University of Gottingen, Johann L. von Mosheim records that the "General Baptists" where spread in large numbers over many of the provinces of England As one article of faith they held
Samuel Richardson (1633-1658) Pastor, First Particular Baptist Church, of London wrote a discourse entitled :
"A Discourse on the Torments of Hell : The Foundations and Pillars therof discover'd, serch'd, shaken, and remov'd. With Infallible Proofs that there is not to be a punishment after this Life, for any to endure that shall never end" 1658 [see also Page 70 herem right hand top Column] -
A Baptist Bibliography
John Milton (1608-1674), "Greatest of the Sacred Poets"; Latin secretary to Cromwell.
"Inasmuch then as the whole man is uniformly said to consist of body, and soul (whatever may be the distinct provinces assigned to these divisions), I will show, that in death, first, the whole man, and secondly, each component part, suffers privation of life...The grave is the common guardian of all till the day of judgment.", "Treatise of Christian Doctine" Vol.1, ch. 13, [see Page 271 here] -
The Prose Works of John Milton ...
Dr A.A. Phelps, pastor Congregational Church, Rochester, New York, and editor of "The Bible Banner", in discussing "Is Man By Nature Immortal?" (pp.639-650), presents twelve counts against the doctrine of innate immortality:
- It has a bad history; it was introduced by the serpent in Eden, and springs from a heathen philosophy; it is not found in Jewish belief; is a compromise with Platonism; adopted and authenticated by the Church of Rome.
- It is at variance with the scriptural account of man's creation.
- It clashes with the Bible statement of man's fall.
- It is opposed to the scriptural doctrine of death.
- It is equally opposed to the physiological facts.
- Immortality is nowhere ascribed to man in his present state of existance.
- Immortality is a blessing to be sought, and not a birthright legacy.
- Inherent immortality is opposed to the scriptural doom of the wicked.
- It supersedes the necessity of the resurrection.
- It reduces the judgment scene to a solemn farce.
- It subverts the bible doctrine of Christ's second coming.
- It is a prolific source of error -Mohammedanism, Shakerism, Swedenborgianism, Spiritualism, Purgatory, Mariolatry, Universalism, Eternal-Tormentism.” - Heresy
Modern era:
"...
annihilationists come from and are part of any number of different denominations. ...
...
E. Earle Ellis was a professor of theology at
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Southern Baptist Convention) until he fell asleep. Similarly,
Dale Moody taught at
Southern Baptist Seminary (also SBC). I bet you never thought conservative
Southern Baptists would hold this view!
Claude Mariottini,
Old Testament professor at Northern Baptist Seminary (American Baptist Convention), is also an
annihilationist, 7 ..." -
Don’t Be Afraid to Rethink Hell: Why Other Beliefs Needn’t Get In Your Way
"... I was a few weeks into the research when I read an article by a renown Southern Baptist New Testament scholar named
E. Earle Ellis titled
“The New Testament Teaching on Hell.” In it,
he argued fairly and thoroughly that the New Testament advocates for an annihilation view of hell. This caught me off guard; I didn’t know he was going to argue for this. I read the article very casually, thinking it was going to be yet another defense of the traditional view. After all,
Ellis is Southern Baptist. He’s evangelical. And he didn’t front his view at the beginning.
He simply looked at all the relevant passages, exegeted them (with the exegetical methods I was taught in seminary), and then concluded that hell would not last forever; that is, its inhabitants would not experience everlasting conscious torment. And Ellis argued this from the text. ..." -
Is Annihilation an Evangelical Option?
E. Earle Ellis ; New Testament Teaching on Hell - Rethinking Hell
W: [mankind is created as "dust" + "breath of life" of God, neither of which we own, and is no different in that respect than the beasts, thus in the first death; returning to dust which we are, "breath of life" of God returns to God, for it is His, not ours] Genesis 2:7, 6:17; Job 34:14,15; Psalms 104:29; Ecclesiastes 8:8, 12:7; Acts 17:25
X: [Jesus, Himself says that the first death = "sleepeth"] Matthew 9:24; Mark 5:39; Luke 8:52; John 11:11
Y: [God raises the dead] John 2:19, 6:39,44,54; Acts 26:8; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 2 Corinthians 4:14; Hebrews 11:19
Z: [Fear/Reverence God] Ecclesiastes 12:13-14; Acts 5:29; Revelation 14:6-12